Sluggish 49ers Still Sinking / Rams hand S.F. sixth loss in row

For the 49ers, the losing continues. But at least this time, the plot was different.

The St. Louis Rams, who have the best record in the NFC and the most productive offense in the league, did not blow the 49ers away yesterday.

In fact, the Rams made no more touchdowns on offense than did the 49ers: one apiece. For the 49ers, it was the first touchdown by their offense since October 17 and the best game of the year by their defense, especially considering the opposition.

But the result was the same as it has been for nearly two months. The Rams handed the 49ers their sixth straight defeat, 23-7. Thus did the Rams sweep the two-game season series for the first time since 1980 and assure that, for the first time since the strike-shortened season of 1982, the 49ers would not win at least 10 games.

San Francisco has a 3-7 record with six to play.

"It's over, and they have to start from scratch," said cornerback Todd Lyght, a nine-year veteran and the longest-serving Rams player, who endured 16 of the 17 consecutive defeats administered by the 49ers against the Rams until last month. "They had a good run. They were up for so many years. In years past, we didn't even match up against those guys, and now they're down."

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Sluggish 49ers Still Sinking / Rams hand S.F. sixth loss in row

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Down -- and continuing to sink.

Sinking so far that, even when it's good, it's bad.

Late in the first quarter, with the Rams ahead just 3-0 after their first two drives stalled, quarterback Steve Stenstrom and wide receiver Terrell Owens teamed up for the 49ers on one of their best plays of this woebegone season.

Owens caught a slant pass across the middle, put a move on a Rams' defensive back to get free, got help in the form of a terrific downfield block from Jerry Rice, and advanced the ball 32 yards to the Rams' 22- yard line. At that point, it was Owens' longest gain of the season. But, when Owens was tackled, he fumbled, and the Rams recovered.

That was one of five turnovers by the 49ers, including a Stenstrom pass that linebacker Mike Jones returned 44 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter. Throw in seven sacks and a couple of dropped passes by Rice, and you understand why the 49ers were able to cross the 50-yard line only twice in 12 possessions.

"I thought we played hard," said 49ers coach Steve Mariucci, searching for hope in a sea of despair. "We turned the ball over way too many times, obviously. We gave them too many chances. We didn't help ourselves."

Stenstrom, whose lack of mobility made him an easy target in the pocket for the Rams' pass rush (four sacks in 16 pass plays), eventually was replaced at quarterback by the more mobile Jeff Garcia late in the third quarter. It didn't make much difference. Garcia was sacked three times and threw an interception that killed off a promising drive in the fourth quarter.

Mariucci declined to say who would start next Monday night against Green Bay, as if it really matters, but he did rule out trying No. 3 QB Pat Barnes, at least at this point.

A rare bright spot for the 49ers was the play of their defense. The Rams did not make a pass play longer than 19 yards. Kurt Warner, who threw five touchdown passes against the 49ers last month, threw just one this time, completing barely half his passes -- 22 of 40 -- for 201 yards.

Ramos McDonald and Monty Montgomery, the sixth and seventh starting cornerbacks employed by the 49ers this season, appeared to do a decent job. Although Isaac Bruce caught 11 passes, he gained just 93 yards.

"I thought they did what they were supposed to do," said safety Tim McDonald. "They took away the deep ball. Any time you can take away the quick strike, they have to work to score, and they had to work to score some points today."

Before yesterday, the Rams had averaged 33.3 points a game and Warner, completing 68.5 percent of his passes, had averaged 272 yards passing and three touchdown passes a game. The Rams' offense had been so productive in scoring range that placekicker Jeff Wilkins had attempted just 10 field goals in nine games, but yesterday, he had to try four, making three.

Meanwhile, the 49ers' slide continues to break new ground.

While Owens became the team's first 100-yard receiver this season (six catches for 120 yards), the overall numbers continue to look dismal:

-- The longest losing streak since 1980, when the 49ers lost eight straight.

-- Three straight games scoring in single digits for the first time in franchise history.

-- Three straight defeats at home after two consecutive undefeated regular seasons at home.

-- Just three offensive touchdowns during the six-game losing streak, just one in the last 42 possessions and two in the last 60 possessions.

-- Over the previous three seasons, the 49ers were 21-3 in division games. This year, they are 1-4.

With their string of 10-victory seasons gone and the playoffs a forlorn hope, even in the weakened NFC, the next barrier to fall for the 49ers will be their string of 16 consecutive winning seasons. They are four years short of the Dallas Cowboys' record, 20 straight winning seasons from 1966-1985.

Still, Mariucci insisted the 49ers would improve in the six remaining games. Of course, they could hardly get much worse. "We are going to find a way to win some of these games," he said.

The Rams are winning more games than ever. They have a two- game lead in the race for homefield advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, heady ground for a team whose record in the '90s is worse than every team in the league except Cincinnati.

Yesterday, they were even able to play in a conservative style because they knew the 49ers posed little threat. Throw in a lot of slipping by their players, who are used to the better footing on their indoor field, and you wind up with a surprisingly close game.

For the record, because it has been so rare, this is how the 49ers got a touchdown on offense: In the second quarter, they drove 80 yards in nine plays, the big one a 30-yard run by Charlie Garner. Fullback Fred Beasley leaped over the goal line from the 1.

At the time, it was the 49ers' first offensive TD in -- choose your unit of measurement -- four games or 14 quarters or 35 possessions. They had gone 203 minutes, 15 seconds of play without an offensive TD, or 35 days on the calendar.

Beasley's touchdown put the 49ers ahead, 7-3. The lead lasted only as long as it took for the 49ers to kick off and the Rams to drive 71 yards in 10 plays for their own touchdown.

On the drive, Warner completed four of six passes for 45 yards, including a 5-yarder to Bruce for the TD. But the key play was Warner's 13- yard run on a quarterback draw on 3rd-and-4.

"The mystique has ended," said Dick Vermeil, the Rams' coach. "They have got a lot of problems in San Francisco. Maybe it is time for the Rams to dominate."